12.12.04

It's holiday time in the suburbs, and it seems like everyone is decorating. I'm getting away to warmer climes next week, but I still have a spot for the true meaning of the season. I forget what that was right now; however, my neighbor has the spirit going strong year after year. He strings thousands of lights from the trees on his property to the delight of many driving by. There's nothing store-bought or manufactured about this display either. It's a true expression of lighting up his part of the world with love. Each strand of lights is attached to the end of an arrow and shot up into a tree. The process goes on for several weeks, culminating in an amazing criss-cross of beautiful strands of light. Peace on Earth.

[Speaking of holiday lights, I wrote last year about the experience I had in Virginia Beach of driving through the Chick-fil-a Holiday Lights at the Beach Presented by Verizon Wireless. You drive your car on the boardwalk, look at these mechanized light sculptures, and listen to a cassette or CD they give you, filled with tacky Christmas music and advertisements. It was unspeakably vulgar, and it cost $10 after you waited in line for nearly an hour.—CTD]